What Keeps Lesbians Apart?

Lesbian Connection: What Stands In The Way?

If you go on Tinder, you'll quickly see how many young lesbians put in their profile that they're looking for lesbian friends. 

I used to think this was just some kind of disingenuous euphemism, but then I realized a ton of young lesbians ARE actually looking for lesbian friends. 

This led me to the following line of questioning: Why is it so hard for lesbians to make friends with each other in the 21st century, that we've turned to the top hookup app to try to make friends instead?

What Is Lesbian-Majority Space?

 

"Lesbians Anonymous" by id-iom is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.

Lesbian-Majority Space

In lesbian-majority space, there's mostly lesbians. 

How Do Lesbian-Majority Spaces Form?

Sometimes lesbian-majority spaces are started on purpose, like women's lands that were made by and for lesbians. Or lesbian bars.  

Other times, lesbian-majority spaces form by accident. Like the women's festivals, which started in Michigan in the 1970s. They were historically intended for all women, but ended up being mainly thousands of lesbians and a smattering of straight and bisexual women.   

"Small" Things You Can Do For Women's Land On Your First Visit

"Dyke March" by sea turtle is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Giving Back To Women's Land 

So you're a 20-something who wants to visit women's land, but you're worried you don't have anything to offer the women on the land. 

You don't have to have specific skills to contribute, everything is valuable to some degree. 

Here's some stuff you can probably do. 

Top 7 Most Interesting Parts Of This Women's Land Dissertation

Women's Lands Studied In The United States

This dissertation on women's land was completed in 2020. You can find the full text available to read here.

The full title of this dissertation is "Making Community in the Wilderness: A Case Study of Women’s Land’s Throughout the United States" by Katherine Elizabeth Ruth Ayers.

Women's lands are an understudied part of American niche movements. While there are a handful of women's lands outside the United States, the majority of them were founded in the United States. The women's lands that still exist and are currently operating as of 2023 are also largely located in the United States (and you can find them and reach out to them directly to inquire about visiting here.)

Since women's lands are so understudied, I was really excited to find Ayer's dissertation! It's an excellent work and worth reading on its own, however, I've pulled out my seven favorite moments from this paper on women's land.